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The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has ignited nationwide debate with its newly announced mandatory drug-testing policy for all incoming recruits—and, significantly, for serving officers across commands. The initiative, unveiled by the Comptroller-General of Customs Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, is designed to strengthen discipline, reduce operational compromise, and elevate professionalism across one of Nigeria’s most strategic frontline agencies.

Adeniyi’s directive comes against the backdrop of reports linking erratic behaviour, impaired judgment, and operational lapses in some commands to substance misuse—an emerging trend with serious implications for border security, trade facilitation, and national safety.

But as commendations pour in from governance experts and security analysts, so also do concerns over officer welfare, mental-health triggers, and systemic stressors within the service.

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A Reform for Discipline or a Band-Aid Solution? Stakeholders Split

Stakeholders across Nigeria’s security and trade ecosystem have reacted with mixed but passionate perspectives.

The Supporters: “This is global best practice.”

Prominent customs and trade expert Dr. Eugene Nweke praised the initiative as a forward-looking reform aligned with the standards of advanced border-management organisations worldwide.

He described the NCS as a crucial node in Nigeria’s economic and national-security blueprint:

“For an agency that handles revenue protection, anti-smuggling enforcement, and the security of our gateways, full mental, physical, and ethical alertness is non-negotiable.”

Nweke argued that the drug-test policy, if executed credibly, would:

• strengthen operational integrity,
  
• enhance public trust,
  
• reinforce the reputation of the NCS, and
  
• provide early detection of behavioural risks that could compromise national borders.
  

He however noted that the effectiveness of the policy depends on implementation, calling for transparent guidelines, certified laboratories, standardised testing, clear thresholds for results, and strict chain-of-custody procedures.

To eliminate bias or selective enforcement, Nweke also recommended:

• independent medical oversight,
  
• ethical observers,
  
• an appeals mechanism,
  
• unbiased screening for both applicants and serving officers, and
  
• integration of the policy into conditions of service and staff welfare frameworks.
  

For him, the drug-test regime must be preventive and corrective—not punitive, if it must earn legitimacy and sustainability.

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The Critics: “Focus on welfare. Address root causes.”

Security analyst Dr. Abdullahi Jabi presented the counter-argument.
He acknowledged the importance of discipline but insisted that root causes of substance use—including job-related stress, fear during risky surveillance operations, and inadequate welfare—must be addressed.

He urged the NCS to prioritise:

• improved remuneration,
  
• functional housing schemes,
  
• modern surveillance and operational tools,
  
• mental-health support systems,
  
• continuous skill-based training, and
  
• better protective equipment.
  

According to Jabi:

“If officers feel secure, equipped, and valued, the temptation to rely on drugs for psychological support will significantly reduce.”

Civil society voices have also argued that drug testing should not stop at Customs, but extend across all security and enforcement agencies to ensure uniform discipline within Nigeria’s security architecture.

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BRANDECONOMY Insight

In an era where Nigeria is repositioning for a $1 trillion Blue Economy, the integrity of frontline border officials cannot be compromised. The NCS serves as a gatekeeper—protecting tax revenues, suppressing smuggling networks, and shaping the ease-of-doing-business environment for maritime trade.

A workforce compromised by substance misuse is a strategic weakness that threatens:

• port efficiency,
  
• marine logistics safety,
  
• trade facilitation targets,
  
• and Nigeria’s credibility in global supply chains.
  

However, a drug-test regime without welfare reform risks papering over deep systemic issues.
Sustainable reform must balance discipline with empathy—enforcing global standards while tackling the human factors that create vulnerabilities within the rank-and-file.

The coming months will reveal whether the NCS can strike that balance.

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